Monday October 28, 2013

Sugar Skull Clay Lesson- Seniors

Class: Seniors in an art room
Time Needed:
a. Day 1- Sugar skull discussion and looking at examples, going over rubric,
and starting a sketch with their list of ideas
b. Day 2-5- working on making the sugar skull out of clay, and sculpting
their objects.
c. After day 5 we will see how many still need time to finish. When every
one is finished, we will need 2 days for firing, and then the students will
paint their skulls.
Art Background Related to the Lesson: More than 500 years ago, when the Spanish
Conquistadors landed in what is now central Mexico, they encountered natives practicing
a ritual that seemed to mock death. The ritual is known today as Dia de los Muertos, or
Day of the Dead. Dia de los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico and certain parts of the
United States, including metro Phoenix. Today, people wear wooden skull masks called
calacas and dance in honor of their deceased relatives. The wooden skulls also are placed
on altars that are dedicated to the dead. The Aztecs and other Meso-American
civilizations kept skulls as trophies and displayed them during the ritual. The skulls were
used to symbolize death and rebirth. The skulls were used to honor the dead, whom the
Aztecs and other Meso-American civilizations believed came back to visit during the
month long ritual
Subject: The subject of this lesson is to teach the students about a celebration in a
different culture that they may not know a lot of information about. We will be learning
about the Day of the Dead. The students will also be learning about clay, and working
with clay and different techniques that may also be new to them. The will be learning
how to carve, and attach things, and also to make different forms.
Supplies:

White drawing paper- scratch paper

Pencils
Erasers

Firing clay
Cups of water
Clay tools
Slab roller
Mask to hold clay up
Boards to work on
Plastic to cover up clay each day

Objectives:
-

Academic Skills
o Following a discussion about sugar skulls and the Day of the Dead
celebration, students will be able to use that knowledge in the future,
and to create their own sugar skulls.
Creative Skills
After looking at examples of sugar skulls and talking about the
Day of the Dead and the significance, students are expected to
create their own sugar skull with things important to them on it.
Craftsmanship Skills
o Students will demonstrate good craftsmanship when they are creating
their clay sugar skull. They are expected to make theirs look neat and
smooth and to clean off the little clay pieces that they will get when
carving into their skulls.

Content Standards:
From the Ohio Department of Education 2012 Visual Art Standards:
1.

1PE: Interpret social and cultural contexts to develop

personal meaning in visual imagery.
Students will be learning about a different culture and about their
artwork, and they will be using that knowledge to create their own
sugar skull using things that they are interested in.
2.
1PR: Demonstrate advanced technical skills and
craftsmanship with various art media when creating
images from observation, memory or imagination.
Students will need to show good skills and techniques when
working with clay, and to do the project correctly when they are
creating their own sugar skull.
State Standards in Other Disciplines:
1. English/ Language Arts Standards:

Acquisition of Vocabulary- Students will learn new vocabulary

words while doing this lesson, and they will be using them in the
future.

Communication: Oral and Visual Standards- Students will be

communicating with their peers while having a class discussion.

Academic Language:
Day of the Dead
Dia de los Muertos
Calacas
Slip
Score
Carve into
Build up
Smush
Wedge
Sgraffito
Leather Hard
Kiln
Glaze
Questions to ask the students after discussion:
1. How would you classify the sugar skulls if you had
to put them into an art genre?
2. How do you attach two pieces of clay together?
3. Why do you think the Day of the Dead celebration
is so important?
Learner Outcomes:
Students will successfully create their own sugar skull out of clay
Students will follow correct procedures for attaching 2 pieces of clay
together
Students will follow the rubrics while working to see what is required of
them
Students will complete a sketch before they start working that will count
as a grade
Safety Considerations:
If water is spilled, clean up immediately. Be careful with some clay tools
that may be sharp.

Alternatives to the Lesson: When students are finished, they can continue working
on their previous project that may not be done.
Procedure: Introduction:
Day 1:
a. Motivation- I will show the students my sample. We will learn briefly
about sugar skulls and the Day of the Dead ceremony. We will look at
different sugar skulls. And I will explain that we will be making a sugar skull
including things on it of interest to the student.
Day 1: students will be talking, and creating a sketch for their skull
with a list of 6-7 things of interest on it. They do not have to go
exactly by their sketch as artists like to change their minds, but they
need to have some sort of idea what they want their skull to look
like.
Day 2: Demonstration of the start of their sugar skull, and attaching
and carving in the clay.
1. pass out boards
2. pass out clay tools
3. pass out slabs
4. cups of water
Students will work and then 15 minutes before class is over, the
students will start to wrap up their pieces and clean up their areas.

c. Teacher-pupil appraisal of activity- The students work quality will show

how well I taught this lesson. I will ask questions as the students are cleaning
up to see how well they were paying attention.
Teacher Evaluation: I will know if the goals were accomplished based on student
success of the project. With clay, I will be able to tell who followed directions based
on when I fire these pieces if any come apart.
Student Evaluation:
Students will receive a grade out of 100 points for this project.
Here is the rubric:

Clay Sugar Skull Rubric

Name_______________________________
Sketch of skull with an idea of where
you are going to place your objects
including a list of the objects

_____/30

The use of 6-7 objects that represent

Yourself including at least 1 personal
Item that you bring in

_______/30

2 raised areas- addition of clay onto

Your skull

_______/30

2 areas that you carve into-pattern

Design on the skull

_______/30

2 objects either hanging off the skull, or

Coming off of the side

_______/30

Neat craftsmanship of working with

The clay, appropriate use
Of slip, score, and smush,
and neat painting of your skulls

_______/50
Total

______/200

Teacher Comments:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
What was your most successful thing about this project?
_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________
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